Marjorie Popp

Marjorie Popp passed away peacefully at her home on June 7, 2024. She was 99 years old. Marjorie was the devoted wife of Donald Popp for 68 years. She was born July 30, 1924, in Petaluma, CA to Walter and Genevieve Ricioli. When she was a little girl growing up during the Great Depression, she and her mother used to feed homeless people who came to their door. "We called them 'hobos' back then," she would say. The family didn't have much to share, but Margie's mother always managed to give something. "Come to think of it, my mother is probably the person who made me think about volunteering," Margie said. Margie graduated from St. Vincent High School, and then during World War II, she and her friends volunteered with the USO at a hall on Liberty Street. They would dance, play cards, share snacks and chat with servicemen from around the country. Many of her girlfriends met their husbands through their time with the USO, and that brought people from around the country to live in Petaluma. Marge married Don Popp, who served in World War II, and he was a Petaluma boy, someone she'd known her entire life. They married after the war and built a house in 1948 where they lived for the rest of their lives. Margie worked at Western Dairy. Margie said "They didn't call us secretaries or anything like that. We were all just office girls." To start, she worked 48 hours a week and brought home the magnificent sum of $17 every Friday. She retired in 1982 when the business sold. Immediately after, she began to volunteer at The Petaluma Kitchen on Payran Street and continued volunteering with COTS until the Pandemic in 2020. Margie's volunteer career was longer than her professional one. Diners loved her booming greetings, her encouragement and her smiles. Petaluma named her volunteer of the year in 2014. All told, she's spent more than 30,000 hours in service to feeding the poor through the kitchen. A few years back, Margie and her fellow volunteers were at a restaurant together. One of the busboys leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "He said, 'You were so nice to me when I was at COTS. Thank you.' I hardly remembered him, but that was so nice to see him doing well for himself," Margie said. She truly cared about the less-fortunate. She and her fellow volunteers continued to stay close friends and they were an encouragement to Margie when she became more homebound. Margie was a lifelong member of St. Vincent's parish. She was preceded in death by her husband Donald, her sister Dorothy Jacobsen Panholzer, and her parents. Margie is survived by a host of nephews, nieces, great-nephews, great-nieces and cousins who loved her dearly, as well as her precious friends she volunteered with and Mary, her loving caregiver. Margie will be fondly remembered by all who knew her. No services have been planned at this time. Contributions may be made to St Vincent's Parish or donations can be made to COTS in honor of Margie at their website www.cots.org. or by mailing a check to PO Box 2744 Petaluma, CA 94953.

St Vincent de Paul Parish
35 Liberty Street, Petaluma CA 94952
Tel: 1-707-762-4278
Web: http://svdppetaluma.org

COTS
PO Box 2744, Petaluma CA 94952
Web: http://www.cots.org